Saving Your Loved One’s Independence

Posted on: 7 September 2017

Medical insurance will often cover in-home care if you have had a major surgery or if you suffer from a debilitating condition that keeps you in bed or in a wheelchair. However, it is very rare to cover other in-home healthcare needs. As such, you may have to pay for the following types of in-home care out of your own pocket.

Support for Special-Needs Children

Special-needs children, regardless of their mobility and cognitive functioning levels, are not supported at home by visiting nurses. It is the assumption of the government and insurance companies that parents are present to care for these children and are expected to do so. This is especially true if the children are high-functioning and are able to do some things themselves. If you need extra support because your child is difficult to manage, or because you have a disabling condition yourself, you will have to pay for it yourself.

Elderly Spouses with No Children

Couples sometimes make the choice not to have children early in their marriage or even at all. As such, some elderly couples with no children do not have close living relatives to care for them when they are older. If you are losing mobility and cannot care for your aging spouse, you need to hire help. This is quite true if your spouse is a wandering risk, can no longer perform personal cares him/herself, and/or has severe dementia.

Despite the fact that you are losing your own mobility, there is still an expectation that you can care for your spouse. When you cannot, insurance companies assume that your spouse will go to a nursing facility, something which most couples choose to avoid.

Agoraphobes 

Agorophobes are people who are absolutely terrified of interaction with other people. They spend most of their lives as shut-ins. Physically, they are completely functional and can care for themselves. It is just their minds that prevent them from going outside of their own doors. Because they are able to get their physical needs met, agoraphobes cannot receive in-home care services, even though many agoraphobes badly need the extra help.

If this describes your current situation, you may have to ask social services to find a support nurse for you. The introductions are always painfully slow, and the process is a difficult one. At least you can get some help and know that you are hiring someone you can trust because your caseworker vetted the person before introducing him/her to you.

For more information about in-home care services that your medical insurance may not provide or cover, talk with a care service company in your area, such as Neighbors Home Care Services.